But at least there is still cash to pay for a few essential extras to mark the 125th anniversary.

The title may not be able to employ quite as many journalists as it did previously, but at least it can still afford to fly 'FT 125' and FT tablet app branded hot air balloons over various global financial centres, host anniversary receptions in London and New York and light the Empire State Building pink.

MPs do their best to hack off Hacked Off

Axegrinder rushed over to Westminster on Tuesday afternoon last week to hear politicians from all three political parties give their reaction to the Royal Charter, in a press conference arranged by campaign group Hacked Off.

No related posts.

But only one out of three was there for the start, Lib Dem MP John Leech. Tory and Labour representatives apparently turned up much later – Axegrinder left after 45 minutes when the silence became too much.

The best soundbite was from Hacked Off director Brian Cathcart: “A Royal Charter is Royal…” Mmm, yes. He added: “It cannot be partisan. So the implication of that is that it can’t be pushed forward by one party.”

Cloak and Dacre

Meanwhile, speculation that the Charter deal was a stitch-up between top editors and the Tories was not dispelled by the fact that when Cathcart went to Number 10 on Monday he bumped into Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre on the way out.

Me? I’m not Colin

Classic PR tactics from the Welsh meat processing plant closed down by the Food Standards Agency in the wake of the horse meat scandal – as revealed by the Telegraph.

“He referred queries to Colin Patterson, his plant manager. When contacted by The Daily Telegraph, a man answered the phone as Colin then hung up. When contacted again, he said he was in fact Dai the cleaner, adding that Mr Patterson was unavailable.”

Prehistoric humility for local reporter

Who says that the ritual humiliation of reporters is a thing of the past, confined to the Kelvin MacKenzie era?

Kent and Sussex reporter Tania Willis wrote a feature this week about what it was like to walk around Tunbridge Wells dressed in a dinosaur onesie.

She reports: “My initial reaction was ‘have you been dared to wear that or is this a promotional scheme’?” wondered Mark Lester, sales development manager at AXA. “Or are you collecting money for charity?” No, just a slow news day apparently!

Coincidence?

Axegrinder salutes this billboard writer for finding a local angle on a big global story.